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Steve Kirsh. He\u2019s the CEO of Token, a Silicon Valley startup company developing a modern platform for open banking. He\u2019s pioneered several computer core technologies like optical mouse, Internet search, spam filtering, and secure identity and founded 7 high tech companies\u2014two with billion dollar market caps such as Infoseek and Frame Technology. He received his BS and MS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 1980.

Famous Five:
Favorite Book? \u2013 Like A Virgin
What CEO do you follow? \u2013 Elon Musk
Favorite online tool? \u2014 SimplyFile
How many hours of sleep do you get?\u2014 6.5
If you could let your 20-year old self, know one thing, what would it be? \u2013 \u201cJust hire good, strong and experienced people\u201d

Time Stamped Show Notes:
01:25 \u2013 Nathan introduces Steve to the show
02:04 \u2013 Token supplies open banking software to banks
02:24 \u2013 There\u2019s no real API that works with banks and this is the problem
03:00 \u2013 One of Token\u2019s customers is Fidor Bank
03:02 \u2013 The problem is most banks don\u2019t have an open API where you can do things like move money
03:19 \u2013 Token can get into Fidor\u2019s API to drive its API
04:13 \u2013 Token has spent time creating an end-to-end secure architecture that is based on digital cryptography
05:24 \u2013 Steve thinks that there\u2019s no real need for blockchain for a lot of financial applications
05:38 \u2013 \u201cThe technology for blockchain is just not appropriate\u201d
05:48 \u2013 The Bank of England did an experiment with etherium
06:24 \u2013 Token was launched in 2015
06:50 \u2013 Steve shares how Token came to life
07:15 \u2013 Token raised $18.5M in a series A
07:26 \u2013 There\u2019s legislation in Europe that requires banks to open their APIs and that\u2019s when Token came in
08:07 \u2013 Token charges per API calls
08:10 \u2013 Token gets the calls for free from the banks
08:50 \u2013 The charge depends on the API calls
09:18 \u2013 Nathan simplifies how the model works
10:05 \u2013 There\u2019s no equivalent to PSD 2 in the USA and it\u2019s only for banks in Europe
10:20 \u2013 This can only happen in the USA if people want to be compatible with the banks in Europe
11:33 \u2013 Token\u2019s first bank
12:11 \u2013 There are currently around 5 banks that are integrated with Token
12:25 \u2013 Team size is 25, split between San Francisco and London
14:20 \u2013 The Famous Five

3 Key Points:
Find the perfect timing and opportunity to pitch your business.
It is easier and more secure for banks to adapt a technology that has been tested than it is for them to create their own.
Hire good, strong and experienced people for your business\u2014it just makes like easier.

Resources Mentioned:
The Top Inbox \u2013 The site Nathan uses to schedule emails to be sent later, set reminders in inbox, track opens, and follow-up with email sequences
GetLatka - Database of all B2B SaaS companies who have been on my show including their revenue, CAC, churn, ARPU and more
Klipfolio \u2013 Track your business performance across all departments for FREE
Hotjar \u2013 Nathan uses Hotjar to track what you\u2019re doing on this site. He gets a video of each user visit like where they clicked and scrolled to make the site a better experience
Acuity Scheduling \u2013 Nathan uses Acuity to schedule his podcast interviews and appointments
Host Gator\xa0\u2013 The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for the cheapest price possible
Audible\xa0\u2013 Nathan uses Audible when he\u2019s driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5-hour drive) to listen to audio books
Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives